Crucible-tongs.



E. N. HESCOCK.

CRUCIBLE TONGS.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 30. I913.

1 ,1 8 9, 1 O7 Patented June 27, 1916.

iiin I imam! IIIIlIl/l/ F 1' WITNESSES W UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ETHAN N. HESCOGK, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO NEW JERSEY FOUNDRY & MACHINE COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

CRUCIBLE-TONGS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 27, 1916.

Application filed October 30, 1913. Serial No. 798,213.

7 '0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ETHAN N. HESCOCK, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the borough of Brooklyn, city and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Crucible-Tongs, of which the following is a specification, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, which forms a part of the same.

My invention relates to crucible tongs and more particularly to a new and improved form of tongs which will evenly distribute the pressure of the load around a true or disfigured crucible without straining or cracking it.

My invention further relates to certain details of construction and combinations which are hereinafter described and set forth in the claims.

In the accompanying drawing showing illustrative embodiments of my invention and in which the same reference numerals refer to similar parts in the several figures,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved crucible tongs shown in connection with a crucible. Fig. 2 is a fragmentary side elevation of the tongs and crucible shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of my improved crucible tongs showing how they evenly distribute the load on a distorted crucible. Fig. 4 is a horizontal section substantially on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a rear elevation of one of the spiders. Fig. 6 is a fragmentary sectional detail view showing one manner of mounting the contact members or buttons upon the arms of the spiders. Fig. 7 is a detail sectional view of a modified form showing a different manner of mounting the buttons upon the arms of the spiders.

Prior to my invention it has been old to use tongs to lift and manipulate crucibles. These crucibles are made of friable material and after some use many develop blisters upon their exterior surface, while others become distorted due to the high temperatures in which they are necessarily used, while others develop both blisters and become distorted.

The crucibles, with which my improved crucible tongs are meant to be employed, are used in metallugical operations in which the crucibles with their metal contents are placed in various types of furnaces in which oil, gas and coal are the most commonly used heating agents to heat up thecrucible to the temperature necessary to fuse its contents. In the process of melting, handling and pouring the metal, the crucibles which are made of friable material usually warp, blister, scale and carry incrustations of slag, etc., all of which vary the original true form of the crucible. The crucibles are expensive and as the average life of one is only about 30 melts, it is evident that prolonging their life means a very great saving of money.

As the crucibles are made of material which is easily broken, and the weight of the crucible and load is held by tongs which press against the opposite sides, the distribution of this pressure over as great an area as possible is of major importance, any decrease in the distribution of pressure due elther to warping, accumulation of foreign matter or to the shape of the tongs greatly increases the danger of breakage, personal 1n ury and money loss.

While my tongs will fit crucibles when new they are intended and designed especially to meet the conditions existing after the crucibles have been used and for various reasons have lost their original form. As the brittleness of the crucibles increases through use the importance of distributing the pressure increases with the age of the crucible. Also in gripping the crucibles with the tongs when preparing to handle them, it is a practical impossibility to set the tongs so that the vertical, horizontal or lateral lines of the tongs will coincide with either the horizontal, lateral or vertical center lines of the crucible. From this it will be seen that in order to handle the crucible in a satisfactory manner, the tongs must not only be so constructed as to compensate for local deformations, such as blisters, scale, and incrustations, but also warping of the crucible as a whole, or the gripping of the crucible with the tongs when the corresponding center lines are not concentric at any points.

The temperature of the crucibles during most of the time they are being handled is above 2000 degrees. By my improved crucible tongs, I provide a device for handling crucibles at any temperature and so designed that any irregularity in the form of the crucible due to warping, scale, blisters or incrustations or eccentric gripping of the crucible by the tongs is automatically compensated.

It has been found in practice uneconomical to use the old crucibles for the reason that while they might not crack in the high temperature which is necessary to melt their contents, when it is attempted to remove them from the source of heat, they are apt to crack due to the unequal strain placed upon the exterior by the old form of tongs, thereby not only ruining the *rucibles but also entailing the loss of their contents with the consequent danger to the workmen. By my invention these blistered and distorted crucibles become perfectly safe and can be used with the same confidence as a new and true crucible. Moreover, by my invention the pressure of the load is distril uted evenly on the surface of a true crucible so as not to subject it to any unequal strain, thereby prolonging its life.

I have shown by way of illustration my crucible tongs 1 having two arms, 2 and 3 pivoted upon the pivot pin a which may be provided with an eye 5 for purposes of lifting and manipulating the tongs. This pin 4. may also pass through the end of a hook (3 for the same purpose.

On the lower end of each arm I pivotally mount a. spider of any approved form. Preferably my spiders 7 are made triangular and are pivoted upon the different arms 2 and 3 by the pins 88 passing through the arms and cooperating with the bearings 9 upon the spiders. These spiders are preferably provided with a slot 10, Fig. 5, to receive the ends 11 of the arms 2 and 3. To limit the movement of the spiders in one direction, I provide a suitable stop, such for example as the lugs 1212 upon the ends of the arms 2 and 3. This lug contacts with the surface 13 of the different spiders when the lower arms 14 of the spiders are moved out to an excessive distance.

Each arm 14:, 15 and 16, Fig. 5, of the spider 7 is provided with a self-adjusting contact member to adjust itself independently of the spider to the surface of the crucible 17'. These contact members are preferably formed as buttons 18 having a shank 19 to pass through a large opening 20 in the ends of the arms 14, 15 and 16 of the spider 6, Fig. 6. The ends of these shanks 19 are provided with any suitable means which, while permitting the independent movement of the button 19 with relation to the spider yet will prevent its unauthorized withdrawal. I have shown by way of illustration the shank 19 provided with screw threads 21 upon which a nut 22 is screwed, the nut being prevented from accidental removal by any suitable means such as by the cotter pin I may, however, use any other suitable connections between the buttons and the spider which will permit the independent adjustment of these members. For example, I have shown in Fig. 7 the spider 24 which is the same as the spider 7 with the exception that the openings 25 flare outwardly to cooperate with a shank 26 of the button 27, the end of the shank 26 be ing provided with a head 28 in any suitable manner such as by upsetting the shank.

My contact members on one pivoted arm are preferably located in different horizon tal planes. Considering the contact members on both of the pivoted arms a plurality of contact members will be substantially in the same horizontal plane while other contact members will be in a different horizontal plane. In use this evenly distributes the strain upon a true or distorted or blistere-d crucible.

In use my improved crucible tongs are brought in their extended position over the crucible 17 and then manipulated so as to contact with and lift the crucible in the well understood manner. The actual gripping is first done by the contact members or buttons 18 which are adapted to adjust themselves to the exterior contour of the crucible 17, independently of the arms 1%, 15 and 16 of the spider 7. This adjustment will compensate for any slight irregularity on the surface of the crucible. The strain of the load is then transmitted to the spiders 7 which have an independent pivot connection upon the ends of the arms 2 and 3 and one which will compensate for any distortion or large blisters which may appear on the surface of the crucible. In this way, the weight of the load is evenly distributed over the exterior surface of the crucible not only while it is new and perfect but also when from any cause it may develop blisters or distortion, such for example as the crucible 81 shown in Figs. 8 and 4:.

My crucible tongs while increasing the life of the crucible and permitting the use of crucibles which have become distorted or blistered, also permits the use of crucible tongs of one size for different-sized crucibles which may be in use in the same foundry.

The ends. of the arms 2 and 3 may be extended in any suitable manner. Preferably I arrange them so that they cross each other and provide them with a link 29.

Having thus described this invention in connection with several illustrative embodiments thereof to the details of which I do not desire to be limited, what is claimed as new and what is desired to secure by Letters Patent is set forth in the appended claims:

1. In crucible tongs the combination of two pivoted arms, substantially triangular spiders pivoted on the arms and loosely mounted nonfusible contact members mounted on the spiders and adapted to have a relative movement with relation to them.

2. In crucible tongs the combination of two pivoted arms, substantially triangular spiders pivoted on the arms and loosely mounted non-fusible buttons carried by the spiders.

3. In crucible tongs the combination of two pivoted arms, substantially triangular spiders pivoted on the arms and loosely mounted non-fusible contact members mounted at the angles of the triangular spiders.

a. In crucible tongs the combination of two pivoted arms and pivoted spiders mounted on the ends of the arms, said spiders having a plurality of contact surfaces so arranged that the majority of said contact surfaces are in one horizontal plane, and the other contact surfaces are in a lower plane than the former surfaces to give a greater bearing surface for the wider and weaker portion of the crucible.

5. In crucible tongs the combination of two pivoted arms and two pivoted substantially triangular inverted spiders, one inverted spider mounted on each of the arms.

(3. In crucible tongs the combination of two pivoted arms and two pivoted substantially triangular inverted spiders, one inverted spider mounted on each of the arms and automatically adjustable contact members carried by the spiders.

7 In crucible tongs, the combination of two pivoted arms and bowed pivoted substantially triangular spiders mounted on the ends of the arms, said bowed substantially triangular pivoted spiders being provided with independently movable contact surfaces which are in difierent horizontal and five cent! vertical planes to contact with and grip a convex crucible.

8. In crucible tongs the combination of two pivoted arms and pivoted spiders mounted on the ends of the arms, said spiders being provided with separate contact surfaces having independent universal pivots on the spiders in different horizontal and vertical planes.

9. In crucible tongs the combination of two pivoted arms and bowed pivoted substantially triangular spiders mounted on the ends of the arms, said bowed pivoted spiders being provided with separate contact surfaces having independent universal pivots in different horizontal and vertical planes to contact with and grip a true or distorted convex crucible.

10. In crucible tongs the combination of two pivoted arms, pivoted substantially triangular members mounted on the ends of the arms, and universal pivoted gripping surfaces mounted on the pivoted members and adapted to automatically adjust themselves to the contour of the crucible.

11. In crucible tongs the combination of two pivoted arms, pivoted substantially triangular members mounted' on the ends of the arms, and gripping surfaces mounted on the arms and having a universal joint with said arms and adapted to automatically adjust themselves to the contour of the crucible.

ETHAN N. HESCOGK.

each, by addreulng the Gommlasioner 0t Intent, 

